Protector finger for looms



April 13, 1943 Rye. TURNER PROTECTOR FINGER FOR LOOMS Filed March 4, 1942 mi' Y INvEN-roF. RICHARD G=TURNER Patented Apr. 13, 1943 PROTECTOR FINGER FOR LOOMS Richard G. Turner, Worcester, Mass., assignor to Crompton & Knowles Loom Works, Worcester, Mass., a corporation of Massachusetts Application March 4, 1942, Serial No. 433,402

9 Claims.

This invention relates to improvements in protector ngers for looms and it is the general object of the invention to construct the nger in such a way that it will not Wear the shuttle binder.

The usual loom protector mechanism includes a protector rod rockably mounted on the lay to place a dagger either in stopping or non-stopping position with respect to shipper mechanism. A finger on the rod engages the shuttle binder and determines the position of the dagger. When protector fingers are made of metal they have a tendency to cut into the binder and thus interfere with the proper operation of both the bindel and the finger. This is particularly true on drop box looms where several binders move vertically with respect to the finger.

It is an important object of my present invention to provide the protector finger with a plug of non-metallic ware resisting material to engage the binder and prevent the aforesaid Wearing. The plug projects behind the finger and keeps the metal part of the finger out of engagement with the binder.

It is another object of my present invention to provide a protector nger with a threaded hole extending through the head thereof to receive a plug which is readily accessible from the front of the finger when the latter is on the loom to facilitate adjustment. It is a further object of my present invention to provide a protector nger plug which has cut thereinto shallow peripheral threads to lit into a bore in the finger having deeper threads than the nger threads. The shallow threads of the plug assist in starting the threading operation of the plug into the head while the deeper threads of the bore cut into the plug and hold it rmly in position. With these and other objects in view which will appear as the description proceeds, my invention resides in the combination and arrangementof parts hereinafter described and set forth.

In the accompanying drawing, wherein a, convenient embodiment of my invention is set forth,

Fig. 1 is a front elevation of a portion of a lay showing protector mechanism with the preferred form of my improved detector linger applied thereto,

Fig. 2 is a vertical section on line 2--2 of Fig. l,

Fig. 3 is an enlarged front elevation of the protector finger and adjacent parts shown in Fig. 1,

Fig. 4 is an enlarged vertical section on line 4-4 of Fig. 3, showing a new plug,

Fig. 5 is a rear view of the head of the protector nger looking in the directions 0f arrows 5, Fig. 4,

Fig. 6 is a view similar to Fig. 4 but showing the plug after it has become worn by use,

Fig. '7 is a vertical section on line 'I--l of Fig. 4. and

Fig. 8 is a view similar to Fig. 7 but showing a modified form of the plug.

Referring particularly to Figs. 1 and 2, I have shown a loom lay I0 having a protector rod II rockably mounted thereon in bearings one of which is shown at I2. A dagger I3 fastened to the rod is provided for cooperation with a knock-olf lever Ill connected by well-known mechanism not shown herein with the shipper handle I5. The lever I4, handle I5 and shipper rod I6 may be mounted in the usual manner on the loom frame The lay is provided with a gang 20 of shuttle boxes which in the present instance comprises four vertically arranged shuttle cells each with a binder 2 I. By means of mechanism'not shown the boxes are raised and lowered so that any one of the four cells can be moved to active picking position .in alignment with the shuttle race 22 of the lay. Secured to the end of the protector rod I I is a protector finger 25 the hub 26 of which may be secured to the rod by a set screw 21.

The matter thus far described is of common construction and except for the upper end of the protector nger forms no part of my present invention. The shuttles S are picked into and out of their cells and upon entry of a shuttle into its cell the corresponding shuttle binder will be moved forwardly to rock the protector finger and` rod Il in a counter-clockwise direction as viewedv in Fig. 2, to lower the dagger I3 from its normal knock-off position shown in dotted lines to the running position shown in full lines. If the shuttie should fail to enter its cell the dagger will remain raised and rock the lever I4 to cause the shipper handle to move from running to stop position as the lay advances. Forward movement of the finger is against the action of a spring 28 of usual form and function.

Because of the repeated striking of the usual protector finger with the several binders the latter become worn and develop cavities which cooperatewith the finger to interfere with the shifting of the gange 2t. In carrying my invention into effect I provide means for preventing this Wear and and formation of cavities. As shown in the preferred form of the invention as set forth in Fig. 4 I employ a plug 38 of any Wear resisting material which is softer than the metal of which the binders is made. I have found that rawhide is an acceptable material of which to make the plug 30. The plug extends through a head 3| formed on the upper end of the protector nger and the head has a bore 34 threaded at 32 to receive the plug. The latter is initially provided with shallow threads 33 of the same lead as the threads 32 to facilitate threading of the rear end of the plug into the bore 34. I preferably cause the rear or right hand end of the plug as viewed in Fig. 4 to extend beyond the head as at 35 for engagement with the binders 2l. The plug therefore has sliding engagement with the binders when the box gang shifts and serves also to keep the head 3| from engaging the binders.

The rear end of the plug soon becomes flattened to the form shown in Fig. 4. When repeated slidings of the binders have resulted in substantial wear of the rear end of the plug, the operator turns the plug in the head by engagement with the front or left end thereof as viewed in Fig. 4. The length of the lug when first applied may be as indicated in Fig. 4, but after considerable use it may wear down to the length shown in Fig. 6.

In the modified form of the invention shown in Fig. 8 I dispense with the single rawhide plug and in its place employ several strips or laminations which may be of any convenient composite section to t into the bore 34. As shown in Fig. 8 four of these strips or laminations are employed, three of them being horizontal and one vertical. I do not wish, however, to be limited to this arrangement or number of strips. The several sections suggested in Fig. 8 may conveniently be cut from discarded Pickers and when grouped form in eiect a plug similar to the preferred form shown in Fig. 4.

From the foregoing it will be seen that I have provided simple means for preventing the wearing of shuttle binders by protector fingers comprising a plug formed of wear resisting material held to the protector finger for engagement with the binders and also effective to hold the protector finger out of engagement with the binders. It will be seen that the plug may be initially somewhat larger than the internal diameter of threads 32 so that when threaded into the bore 34 it will be held in place. The threads 32 are large enough to cut into the plug and cause it to feed rearwardly when properly turned.

Furthermore, the forward end of the plug projects to a position where it is readily accessible by the operator who may turn the plug in the head to compensate for wear at the binder end. It will also be seen that I am not limited to the use of a single piece of rawhide or the like but can if desired employ two or more strips which may be so cut as to nest together and form a plug which can be threaded into the bore.

Having thus described my invention it will be seen that changes and modifications may be made therein by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the inveniion and I do not wish to be limited to the details herein disclosed, but what I claim is:

1. In a loom protector finger having a head with a transverse threaded bore extending therethrough, and a plug of non-metallic wear resisting material of cylindrical'form having initial shallow threads cut in the periphery therefrom to conform to the pitch of the threads of the bore, the threads of the bore being deeper than the initial threads of said plug to be embedded into the latter when said plug is threaded into said bore, said threads within the bore cooperating to hold said plug with the rear end thereof projecting behind said head for engagement with a shuttle binder.

2. In a loom protector linger having a, head with a. transverse threaded bore extending therethrough, and a plug of non-metallic wear resisting material of cylindrical form having initial shallow threads cut in the periphery therefrom to conform to the pitch of the threads of the bore, the threads of the bore being deeper than the initial threads of said plug to be embedded into the latter when said plug is threaded into said bore, said threads within the bore cooperating to hold said plug with the rear end thereof projecting behind said head for engagement with a shuttle binder and hold the forward part of said plug in front of said head to afford a hand hold for turning said plug in the head.

3. A shuttle binder operated protector finger comprising a body with a hub at one end to receive a protector rod and a head at the other end thereof having a screw threaded bore extending therethrough, and a plug threaded into said bore and having the rear end thereof projecting behind said head for engagement with the shuttle binder, said plug being made of such a material that said rear end will be expanded in use due to impact of the shuttle binder to a cross section greater than the cross section of said bore and resist turning of said plug in the bore in a direction to move said plug forwardly relatively to said head.

4. A shuttle binder operated protector finger having a head provided with a screw threaded bore, and a plug of non-metallic wear resisting material expandable under impact of the binder and threaded into said bore and having a rear end projecting behind said head for engagement with the binder, said rear end when expanded due to impact of the binder having a diameter greater than the diameter of said bore and resisting turning of the plug in said bore in a direction to feed the plug forwardly relatively to said head.

5. A shuttle binder operated protector linger having a head with a screw threaded bore extending backwardly and forwardly therethrough, and an externally screw threaded plug of wear resisting material expandable under impact of the shuttle binder and tted into said bore, the plug having a forward end in front of said head to provide for turning the plug in said bore in a direction to move the plug rearwardly relatively to the head, and the plug having a rear end projecting behind the head for engagement with the shuttle binder, said rear end when expanded due to shuttle binder impact having a diameter greater than the diameter of the bore and resisting turning of the plug in said bore in a direction to move the plug forwardly relatively to the head.

6. A shuttle binder operated protector finger having a head provided with a screw threaded bore, and an externally screw threaded cylindrical plug iitted into said bore and having a rear end projecting behind said head, said plug being made of a material soften than the shuttle binder so that the latter by impact with the rear end during loom operation will increase the cross section of said rear end to a size greater than the cross section of said bore and thereby prevent turning of the plug in said bore in a direction to feed the plug forwardly relatively to said head.

7. In loom protector mechanism having a protector rod, a shuttle binder which moves back- Wardly and forwardly during loom operation, a

protector finger on the rod having a screw threaded bore therein, and an externally screw threaded plug fitted into said bore and having a rear end projecting from the finger toward the binder for engagement therewith, said plug befing made of such a material that said rear end is expanded due to impact of the binder to a cross section of greater area than the area of the cross section of said bore, whereby said rear end when thus expanded resists turning of the plug in said bore in a direction to move the plug relatively to the finger in a direction away from the shuttle binder. v

8. In loom protector mechanism having a prorector rod, a shuttle binder which moves back wardly and forwardly during loom operation, a protector finger on said rod having a screw threaded bore, and an externally screw threaded plug fitted into said bore and having an end projecting from the finger toward the binder for engagement therewith, said plug being made of a material which expands due to shuttle binder impact so that said end of the plug has the cross section thereof increased to an area greater than the cross sectional area of said bore during loom operation, whereby said end due to the increased cross sectional area thereof resists turning of the plug in said bore in a direction to move the plug relatively to the finger away from said binder.

9. In loom protector mechanism having a protector rod, a shuttle binder which moves backwardly and forwardly during loom operation, a protector nger on said rod having a screw threaded bore extending therethrough, and an externally screw threaded plug fitted into said bore and having an end projecting from the 1inger toward the binder for engagement therewith, said plug being made of a material which expands due to shuttle binder impact so that said end of the plug has the cross section thereof increased to an area greater than the cross sectional area of said bore during loom operation, whereby said end due to the increased cross sectional area thereof resists turning of the plug in said bore in a direction to move the plug relatively to the finger away from said binder, said plug having another end projecting from the finger on that side thereof opposite to said binder to provide for turning the plug in the bore in a direction to move the plug relatively to the finger toward said binder to compensate for wear of the first named end of said plug.

RICHARD G. TURNER. 

